Are we Market ready????

Market ready?  Hmmm, now that's a big question!!!  I'm waiting for the mail lady to come and bring a box of fabric for the last quilt I need to make.  Unfortunately we are one of the last stops on her route AND I didn't realize yesterday was a no-mail day, so I'm getting a little impatient!!!  It's not a big one, so I should be able to knock it out pretty quickly - I just want it here so I can get started!!!!

The rest of the quilts are pieced and almost all of them have been quilted and photographed, but we still have a couple that are unfinished or in their last stages before completion. They say it takes a village to raise a child, well it definitely takes a village to complete a quilt - designer/pattern writer, piecer, quilter, binder, photographer, and of course the FedEx man that carries it between all of these people!!!  Thank you to our village!!!  Without them we wouldn't have all of these wonderful quilts to share with all of you.

As I've been finishing quilts, Paula and her "village people" have been cutting and assembling kits during the day and then she's writing patterns at night!!!  The rest of the week will be spent in pattern editing.  I do have to say that is one of my least favorite things to do, but it must be done!!!  I leave for Houston on Monday to help finish up and then it's time to load the truck and trailer and head down to the George R Brown Convention Center for set up!!!  It's a good thing we have 2 days for set up because we spend at least one whole day just catching up with everyone!!

Here's a couple of photos of the quilts that are off being quilted, bound and photographed:

Lancaster re-do done!!!

One of the new mini quilts - Spools

Another mini quilt - Tablerunner

I finished these last week after my trip to NY to see my granddaughters (and their mom and dad too!!).  The trip was fantastic - rainy and cloudy, but the time with the girls was wonderful.  I felt like I had been voted Miss Popularity - "Grandma sit next to me", "Grandma can I sit in your lap", "Grandma can you read me a book", "Grandma can you put me to bed", and on and on.  I was in Grandma Heaven and I can't wait to go back!!! They will all be here after Thanksgiving and then we're heading to Disney World for a couple of days - can't wait!!!  I brought Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman and it was a hit, especially with Julianne.  I think I read it at least 20 times in 2 days!!

We didn't get to go apple picking, but we did go to the orchard farm stand and get some apples and apple cider donuts (yummy - think I ate 3 the first day, but who's counting).  The girls were nice enough to pose for Grandma in front of the pumpkins.

Sydney and Julianne and some big pumpkins!!!!

Sunday was "Fall Decorating Day".  I figured I better get it done before I leave for Market.  Usually I just pull up the photos of the previous year's decorations on my iPad, but apparently I never took pictures last year.  (Paula calls this "decorating by number"!!!)  Trust me, I took pictures this year for next year!!!  No sense reinventing the wheel!!!  I'm most proud of my wooden tool box.  I bought the tool box on one of our retreat trips to Rachel's Farmhouse and it's just been sitting under a side table.  I was cruising through other people's pins on Pinterest one day and Vicky had pinned a tool box all decorated for Fall!!! I saved that puppy and used it as my "inspiration".  I even have a picture saved for Christmas.  Sure hope someone pins something for the rest of the seasons or its going back to sitting empty under the side table!!!

I also changed the quilts on the quilt frames and couches.  My sister-in-law was asking about all of the quilts that are stored in the cabinet and that you never really get to see and she suggested I change them around - take some out of the cabinet and put them out for people to see.  I liked the idea, so I have different quilts out now.  She suggested that I feature a "Quilt of the Month".  She also suggested that she would be "willing" to display some of the ones that are still in the cabinet in her house!!!!  Like that's ever going to happen!!!!!  These are my babies and they are not ready to leave the nest yet!!!

Wall of quilts

 Well, still no mail lady, so I guess I'll go proof some patterns - yippee!!!

Until next time, happy quilting,
Mary Ellen

PS - Box arrived while I was previewing the post!!!  YAY!!! Let the sewing begin.  NCIS, NCIS-LA, Person of Interest and Spinning Stars - going to be a good night!!